Billick Has Contacted Smith

Ravens coach Brian Billick confirmed Monday that the defending champs are indeed interested in luring Robert Smith out of retirement.

What is it about former Vikings coaches trying to convince Robert Smith to keep playing football?

During the offseason, Tampa Bay and Tony Dungy made their pitch to get Smith to play for them -- despite a glut at running back. Now it's Brian Billick and the Ravens trying to make Smith's retirement short-lived.

Billick confirmed what VU reported last weekend, that the Ravens are trying to get Smith to forego retirement to replace injured Jamal Lewis, who tore an ACL and is lost for the season.

While Billick confirmed that inquiries have been made to Smith, he says that, at this time, he expects Smith to remain retired.

TUESDAY NOTES* Moe Williams came into training camp as the No. 1 back on the depth chart, but those days appear to be over. Williams is going to miss Thursday's game with the Steelers and may be out for the Indianapolis game as well -- dropping him from almost any chance of securing the starting job for the regular season opener. He had an MRI done on his left foot that found a strained ligament that has kept him out of practice and will likely sideline him at least one or two weeks.
* Former Viking Corey Fuller was never the sharpest knife in the drawer, but reports out of Cleveland show that he may be downright stupid. Following Cleveland's win over Green Bay, Fuller was arrested in a downtown entertainment area for blocking traffic. According to police documents, Fuller asked police to cross an intersection being patrolled and, when the cops refused, he refused to move his car. He was arrested and allegedly twice offered a policeman $5,000 to let him go, which is a far more serious offense than what he was arrested for.
* The Vikings settled the lawsuit against them by Mickey Giuliani, who was fired in August, 1999, as the team's merchandising manager. Under the agreement, neither side can discuss the terms of the settlement. The case was scheduled to go to trial today.